Leading African figures in various fields of life have surprise season’s poetic gifts courtesy of award-winning poet, Akeem Lasisi.
They include Sudanese-British businessman and philanthropist, Mo Ibrahim; and Fanfa Oil Ltd founder, Folorunso Alakija.
All of them will be celebrated in Lagos on December 10, 2023 at the first edition of African Citations, an exhibition of Lasisi’s poetic tributes.
Also on the list are Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote; and his colleagues such as Dr Mike Adenuga and Mr Femi Otedola. They are being celebrated alongside icons from other fields based on their contributions to service to mankind. Leading lights such as the Nobel laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka; his legendary pal, the late Professor Chinua Achebe; poet laureate, Professor Niyi Osundare; Chief Afe Babalola, and leading entertainers Angelique Kidjo, Kunle Afolayan as well as Genevieve Nnaji also have poems dedicated to them.
The ambitious project will see Lasisi showcase the tributes in the forms of artworks, musical albums and videos.
“As I have always tried to do, I want poetry to travel beyond the confines of poets and other intellectuals. I want more people to have access to it, enjoy its beauty, own it and contribute to its expansion,” Lasisi says in a chat with co-traveller in the arts, Ropo Ewenla.
He adds that he foresees a situation more people will embrace the performative potential of poetry, and the fact that African poetry is originally spontaneous, oral and people-oriented.
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Lasisi says, “As the world particularly unapologetically goes digital, we have no excuse not deploying all the elements the technology offers to the promotion of our craft. I have been doing this even before now. Now that the industries are becoming more and more linked, it may just be a time to embrace the tide.
“I have had encounters with many people and organisations in the course of my about 30 decades of my performance, journalism and teaching adventures. I have performed poetry at many events. I have been commissioned to produce multimedia poetry while I have had cause to admire folks from a distance based on various factors. Some of these have been produced into musical poetry and videos. They have been on air, online etc. Now, the experimentation will berth in a gallery setting so that it becomes more total.”
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